"Why don't you just do Hamilton?" A Look at Why You Don't See Some Shows at Community Theaters

“Why don’t you do Hamilton? It’s a perfect fit. Hamilton Players doing Hamilton!”
I have lost count of how many times I’ve heard that suggestion. Along with:
“Why not Wicked?”
“Or Phantom of the Opera?”
“What about Les Misérables?”
Trust me when I say: I would love to produce those shows. Many of them sit at the very top of my personal dream list. But the simple truth is this: it isn’t legal for us to do them.

In an earlier blog post, I talked about licensing and royalties. What I may not have made entirely clear is that not every show is available for licensing, especially to community theatres. Just because a musical exists does not mean any theatre company can produce it. Many major titles, including Hamilton and Wicked, are restricted to a limited number of professional producing companies. When those companies license a show, they often receive exclusive performance rights, meaning no other organization within a certain geographic radius, and often within a specific timeframe, may produce it. It is also entirely up to the creators and rights holders to decide when, or if, a show becomes available to amateur or community theatres. Some productions remain restricted far longer than people expect. Wicked, for example, premiered on Broadway more than two decades ago and is still not available for nonprofessional licensing.

In general, large-scale musicals do not become available to community theatres until Broadway runs and professional touring productions have concluded. As long as national or international tours are active, exclusivity remains part of the business model. Other shows come with highly specific limitations. The full version of Les Misérables, for instance, is frequently restricted while professional tours are operating. A school edition exists, but it comes with strict requirements: performers must typically be under 18, venues must seat fewer than 500 patrons, and productions are limited to a small number of performances. In some cases, school editions are available only to accredited educational institutions or full-time performing arts programs.

To be frank, many of these restrictions can feel puzzling from the perspective of a small, rural community theatre. It’s hard to imagine that a production mounted in rural Montana would affect ticket sales for a Broadway tour or impact an international brand. But I also understand why these rules exist. Professional companies pay significant sums for exclusive rights. They do not have the time or resources to evaluate every small-venue request individually, and exclusivity means exactly that: exclusive. Even if we believe our production would pose no competition, the organization that purchased those rights is protecting a substantial financial investment, and they have every right to do so. There is also a practical reality: audiences do not always read the fine print. While it may seem unlikely, people sometimes confuse productions with one another, and that confusion can have real consequences.

We experienced this firsthand in 2016, when people across the country mistakenly confused Hamilton Players with Hamilton the Broadway musical. Following a widely publicized curtain speech during a Broadway performance, our small community theatre, which had absolutely no connection to the production, received waves of negative messages and criticism online. Despite how easy it was to verify the facts, many people simply assumed we were involved. That experience made something very clear: brand confusion is real, and exclusivity helps prevent it.

So, while I would love nothing more than to see titles like Hamilton, Wicked, or Les Misérables on our stage, producing theatre also means respecting the legal and professional systems that protect artists, producers, and audiences alike. Until those shows become available, we’ll continue doing what community theatre does best: telling meaningful stories, creating opportunities for local artists, and bringing live performance to our community …one licensed show at a time.